Versatile and sizeable: Jørgen Sundgot takes Fujitsu Siemens' latest workhorse of a Pocket PC, the LOOX 610 BT/WLAN, for a spin.
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When the original Pocket LOOX 600 first came out, it ranked as one of the most capable Pocket PC 2002 devices on the market - despite any flaws it may have had. Now its heir has arrived, and the Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PC powered LOOX 610 BT/WLAN follows up on the strong points of its predecessor with specifications that outperform the vast majority of Pocket PCs on the market; yet is hampered by a cardinal flaw.
 | Although powerful and versatile, the software of the LOOX 610 hampers its (sizeable) hardware
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Design
The most striking aspect of the LOOX 610 is the shere size of the unit; at a massive 14.8 x 7.8 x 1.8 cm and weighing 205 g, this represents the major flaw of the LOOX 610 - competing manufacturers deliver a similar feature set in much smaller form factors. Despite its size, however, there is nothing wrong with the ergonomics of the handheld; it is quite long, but can still be held comfortably thanks to it being narrow.
Saturation is the keyword for the display of the unit, which offers satisfactory brightness and ClearType performance, along with strong colour saturation - almost too strong, in fact. Stylus travel is somewhat longer than would have been preferred, but the stylus itself is well-weighted and overall a quite alright aluminum affair.
Buttons are plentiful on the LOOX 610, with the usual four Pocket PC hardware shortcut buttons gracing the lower front of the device; these offer excellent tactile feedback, as opposed to the power on/off button, located in the upper right corner of the front, as well as the Fujitsu Siemens Speed Menu and the separate scroll up/down buttons placed far up on the left side of the handheld. A soft reset button is conveniently placed just below these.
Two alert LEDs are placed just above the power on/off button, and although their brightness is tuned quite well, only one of the LEDs - the blue on the left side - indicates wireless activity, and does not distinguish between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, leaving users to check which is activated manually. In the audio department, the LOOX 610 chalks up points for excellent treble and bass boost and performance through the 3.5 mm earphone jack, while the embedded speaker is expectedly not much to shout about.
Connectivity
In terms of connectivity, few devices can beat the LOOX 610 BT/WLAN model at its time of introduction. The device kicks off with offering an SDIO capable SD/MMC Card expansion slot and a CompactFlash Type II expansion slot, enabling compatibility with virtually every Pocket PC accessory on the market. Also, the included USB cradle utilizes a separate USB synchronisation cable which can be used when travelling; a very nice trait indeed.
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